Summary
This essay offers a brief chronology of the origin of the most important tourist pole in Mexico, Cancun, this tourist center is accompanied by the history of the current state of Quintana Roo, since it was previously a free and sovereign territory, but did not have the status of "State".
Cancun has been characterized as a sun-beach destination, however in recent years different forms of tourism have developed such as: ecotourism, health, archeology, entertainment and events, adventure, business and conferences, and conventions, and it is on this last tourist segment that we will deal with in this essay.
Introduction
This essay is intended to leave baccalaureate and undergraduate students at the Universidad del Sur headquarters Cancun, a study of the beginning and development of tourist activity in Cancun, since this city lives mainly by direct and indirect tourist activity and we consider It is important that the current residents know a little of their history and what is the future that awaits them.
This essay contains a brief remembrance of the origins of this tourist pole, located in the most remote area of the southeast of the republic and forming part of the Mayan jungle.
It is worth remembering that Cancun is initially conceptualized as a recreation center for Banco de México workers, later it is expanded adding the youth hostels created through CREA, as well as other destinations such as Oaxtepec or Malinche, however, were designed The beauty of its beaches, the blue and crystalline waters of the Mexican Caribbean, make it develop as the main center of attraction at the international level and destined for the wealthiest sectors of the world.
Four decades have passed since the birth of Cancun and its tourist offer has been aging, which is why it has to be constantly renewed, and new forms of tourist offer have had to be found, which is why throughout the state of Quintana Roo, developed the segments of ecotourism, archaeological tourism, health, business and conferences and conventions.
Convention tourism participates in 20% of the total tourists that come to Cancun, which is significant since the academic, business, and scientific groups take advantage to do their business meetings and to see this part of the paradise of the Mexican Caribbean, since it has an average of 6 days of stay at the destination.
Economy of a tourist destination. Convention tourism
Development
Definitively, the history of Cancun has gone hand in hand with Fonatur, since the beginning of its operation with positive growth in its tourist indicators, the Mexican government decides to create the fully planned tourist center, due to the beauty of its beaches, its extension and biodiversity. of its reefs, its islands, lagoons, cenotes, estuaries and the great variety of flora and fauna, for which to start with the development of this work it is necessary to take a look at the chronology of events and thus understand the significance of the tourist destination of the which we have to talk about.
Cancun historical timeline
1964. The highway that connects the then territory of Quintana Roo with the rest of the country is completed.
1966. Pedro Dondé, an official of the Bank of Mexico, conducts market studies for the institution's tourism project.
1966-1967. Tourism registers a 12% annual growth rate in Mexico, against 4% in the Far East and 46% in the Pacific basin. In 1967 a little over 20 million travelers visited Florida, while another 4 million traveled to the Caribbean islands, in contrast to Yucatan, which in the same period only received 60,000 foreigners.
1966-1968. Banco de México decides to study the possibilities of promoting tourism. After studying in Mexico and abroad, he proposes the creation of an organization called the Fund for the Promotion of Tourist Infrastructure, Infratur. It would have three objectives: to analyze and consolidate the growth of existing tourist destinations; grant long-term credit and low interest rates for the construction of new hotel rooms throughout the country; develop new tourist centers.
1967. They are dedicated to the project of founding a tourist development in the middle of the jungle. They choose the territory of Quintana Roo, which is the farthest and worst communicated in the country. It is 2,000 kilometers from Mexico City.
1967. Javier Rojo Gómez is appointed Governor of the then Quintana Roo territory, by Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, President of the Republic.
1968. At the end of 1968, Banco de México technicians selected six ideal sites for tourist developments. Among the places are considered two in Baja California Sur, two in Oaxaca (Puerto Escondido and Huatulco), Cancún and Ixtapa.
1968. The evaluation of Cancun to build a tourist development is finished.
1971. At the end of 1971 and during 1972, more than 5,000 people worked in Cancun with the aim of overcoming the adversity imposed by the virgin forest.
1971. 30 million pesos are invested of the more than 200 million calculated to build Cancun.
1972. In the middle of the year the first stone of the first hotel that is built in Cancun is laid.
1973. President Echeverría decrees that the entire territory of Quintana Roo is a free zone.
1973. The Cancun International Airport is inaugurated and some US and two national companies begin to operate.
1974. On March 24, the contract for a new trust to promote tourism in Mexico is signed at the Ministry of Finance. Fogatur and Infratur disappear and the National Fund for the Promotion of Tourism emerges: Fonatur.
1974. In September the first hotel in Cancun, the Bojórquez Hotel, was inaugurated. The hotel offer in Cancun in its first year of operation is 332 rooms, spread over three hotels: Playa Blanca, Caribe Cancún and Villas Tacul.
1975. Cancun then has 8,500 inhabitants in its second year of tourist life.
1975. Cancun's hotel offer in its second year of tourist life is 1,322 rooms, spread over 15 hotels. The Camino Real, Presidente and Villas Presidente hotels begin operating. Almost 100 thousand tourists are present and 1,013 flights are received.
1976. Cancun's hotel offer, in its third year, increases to 2,023 rooms in 22 hotels. The number of tourists exceeds 180 thousand and the flights received increase to 3,245.
1976. The Board of Governors of the Inter-American Development Bank takes place in Cancun, chaired by its Director Antonio Ortiz Mena.
1976. The new President of Mexico, José López Portillo, who has known the Fonatur project since its inception, offers him his political and financial support during his administration.
1977. Cancun can boast 30 hotels with almost 2,500 rooms and 265,000 visitors. The airport serves 4,820 flights.
1979. Cancun has 41 hotels, 2,923 rooms, 400 thousand visitors and its airport operates 5,639 flights, of which 371 are charters. For the first time, foreign tourists represent 50.9% of Cancun guests.
1980. November 24 marks the tenth anniversary of the initiation of Cancun. A decade ago, Cancun hardly gave shelter to those who built it.
1982. Cancun has 52 hotels and 5,258 rooms to serve tourism. More than 300 thousand visitors come to its beaches. 9,325 flights take place in Cancun.
1983. In Cancun 52 hotels and 5,709 rooms represent the hotel offer for the 754 thousand visitors who arrive. 10,805 flights descend on your airport. It is the first time that the figure of ten thousand flights has been exceeded and the charters are 875. 67.6% of the tourists come from abroad. Cancun is consolidated as a prestigious international destination.
1984. Cancun celebrates ten years of being open to tourism. It has 57 hotels and more than 6 thousand rooms to host the almost 714 thousand tourists who visit it on its tenth anniversary. The Cancun airport receives 10,059 flights.
1988. Fonatur donates to Quintana Roo the Cancun Convention Center.
1988. Cancun has 95 hotels and a capacity of 11,891 rooms to accommodate 838,000 visitors. Cancun airport receives 10,804 flights of which 190 are charters.
1988. Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Gilberto in September, Fonatur implements the Special Program for the Reconstruction of Damaged Hotel Facilities and Related Services. The most affected tourist towns are: Cancun, Cozumel, Isla Mujeres and Puerto Progreso.
1988. Fonatur supports the rehabilitation of Cancun; invest in hotel zone, street lighting, gardening, roads and drainage network. Low Maintenance and Operation (BMO, from Fonatur) shines during the rescue to the city.
1988. From December 6, 1988 to January 15, 1990, Pedro Joaquín Coldwell is CEO of Fonatur.
1989. Cancun, recovered from the damage of Hurricane Gilberto in 1988, receives the Miss Universe contestants in April.
1990. Fonatur sells the Zazil-Há, Playa Linda hotels and the Pok Ta Pok golf course.
1993. Cancun has 109 hotels and 18,540 rooms. Its visitors are almost two million and the flights reach 26,515. (FONATUR, 2013)
Economy of the convention tourist destination in Cancun in Mexico
Currently there is in Quintana Roo. 1,326 million (2010) inhabitants.
Cancun is one of the most important tourist destinations in Mexico and one of the most recognized worldwide. Located in the state of Quintana Roo, in the Yucatan Peninsula region, it has a semi-tropical climate, and an average temperature of 27 ° C, which can reach 35 ° C during the summer, with sunny days during the highest part of the year.
Its hotel zone is an island 30 km long that communicates with the mainland at its southern and northern ends; the turquoise waters of the Caribbean sea bathe its beautiful beaches in the east while the Nichupté Lagoon decorates it with unbeatable sunsets in the west. Cancun offers visitors the unrivaled beauty of its white sand beaches, infinity of underwater adventures in the second largest barrier reef in the world and the second located in Puerto Morelos, the Mesoamerican Reef System, and abundant mangrove forests surrounding the lagoon.
In Cancun the options for recreation and fun are endless. The destination offers all kinds of water sports and activities: snorkeling, scuba diving, jet skis, parachute, windsurfing, yacht rides, and jungle and lagoon tours.
It has more than 100 huge hotel complexes, a beach with crystal clear waters with white sand and a wide range of natural attractions. Around 3 million visitors come to this heavenly place every year. Of course, it is a place where most of the rates are in dollars and therefore, a little expensive for the compatriot. The calm Caribbean Sea is its maritime limit.
The organizations that make up this industry must more frequently face complex problems of supply, demand, competition, financing and globalization. To remain competitive and maximize their opportunities in local, regional and international environments, tourism companies require a strategic analysis, the product of in-depth research and guided by independent criteria.
Convention tourism
In 2013 With 163 events on the agenda, Mexico ranked fifth in America in the area of meeting tourism, after the United States, Brazil, Canada and Argentina. This segment contributes more than 738 thousand jobs in different branches focused on the provision of services.
According to evaluations by the Center for Higher Studies in Tourism, a total annual spill of 32.5 billion dollars was estimated, of which 56% is spent on tourism companies and the rest in different sectors of the economy. (AH, 2013)
The objective is for Mexico to rise places in the international ranking and convert the business and meetings segment as an optimal generator of foreign exchange, welfare and development.
In the last two years, the federal government has invested almost 337 million pesos in modernization, equipment, infrastructure and enclosure projects. (News from Quintana Roo, 2014)
Another important point to note is that the search for zero exemption for the payment of taxes is also being tried and will continue to be done, for national operators and for meetings of an international and national nature so that we can be competitive with other countries; The proximity with the United States and South America gives us a great possibility of having international meetings. Cancun is among the most important destinations in Mexico.
But what is most valuable and is something that has come to be taken into account is precisely the people that make up this tourism sector, their commitment and professionalism have managed to position us as one of the most strengthened destinations. Our city through the Convention and Visitors Bureau has been certified as a destination of excellence in tourist services according to the international standards of the DMAI (Destination Marketing Association International).
The convention center
The convention center, the Cancun Center has been named as the best place to hold congresses and conventions at the Latin American level, as well as one of the most outstanding in the entire world. In addition, it has 23 hotels with convention centers for all types of money orders and budgets. (AH, 2013)
Convention tourism represents relief for hoteliers, since in addition to being a new branch to exploit, it has been very profitable in recent years since Mexico and in particular has been relatively new in this sector. For this, percentages are already known regarding this type of tourism.
The congressmen represent 20% of the annual occupation in the resort. (AH, 2013)
The Cancun Convention Center plans to close 2014 with 55 events.
For hoteliers, congressmen represent 20% of the annual occupation of the resort, which until November 2013 was three million 728 thousand 247 tourists, according to the Tourist Indicators of the Secretariat of Tourism of the State of Quintana Roo (Sedetur). The average cost for each is $ 2,500 for a stay of four to six nights.
The groups and conventions have shown a good behavior since, although in percentage it does not increase, the congressmen who come to Cancun go hand in hand with the influx of tourists. In 2013 there was an increase of 1.3% in the number of visitors, compared to 2012.
For this year, the Cancun Convention Center plans to close with 55 events. One of the most important will be the Global Host Association convention on June 4, which will bring together buyers from the United States and Canada. It will be the second edition and will have 60 organizers and 120 buyers. The objective is that they know the place so that they can return later.
One of the strategies is to attract more national congressmen, since up to now 80% of the forums that are held are international.
One of the negative situations is that the Convention Center is wasted.
And it is not promoted as they should, the convention center is totally wasted; as we all know, it is not possible that it will be sold right now (events and conventions) and we will have results in a month or two; Normally, these types of events with studies already carried out previously are sold at least one year in advance, so we have a lack of events that support Cancun with this segment. Since the most important and large events in terms of the number of people is centered in hotels in the Riviera Maya.
Ramos Flores said "that a global review of the business and sales strategy that was being implemented must be done, as well as" reviewing the facilities it offers, in what conditions it is, if the property is really ready to provide the service that is requires ”. (Millennium, 2012, p. 36).
Limited promotion
The Cancun Visitors and Conventions Office (OVC) invests more than 160 million pesos annually in the international promotion of this destination, not counting the budget exercised by the Riviera Maya Promotion Trust.
Much of these resources are invested, mainly, in the promotion for the American and Canadian markets, which in 2012 generated 3 million 207,210 visitors to the Mexican Caribbean. The rest of the resources are invested in Europe and emerging markets such as Russia or Brazil.
Markets such as the Australian or the New Zealand, which last year generated 23,499 tourists to Cancun together, or the Cuban, which contributed 12,792 travelers, are not included in the promotional campaigns.
Even the African continent has a growing presence in tourism that enters through the Cancun airport. In 2012, South Africa generated 2,362 tourists, while Egypt reported 823.
As a whole, 6,723 visitors arrived from that continent during all of 2012, and the SIOM monthly report shows that 4,907 had already entered the Cancun airport until August 2013, so, according to the projection, they will far exceed the figures of the previous year.
A more aggressive marketing strategy is required, the operation of private initiative, since they are the experts in business; promote sustainable certifications and professionalization of personnel, also promoting strategic alliances, and seeking financing tools for new companies in tourism destinations. (AH, 2014).
Mexico, third place worldwide of followers in social networks interested in tourism
Mexico ranks third in the world in the number of followers on social networks interested in tourism, according to the ranking prepared by the eTourism Monitor (Online Tourism Monitor), registering more than 885 thousand followers on the official Facebook account of the visitmexico page.com (FONATUR)
The first place is held by the Australian Tourism Office, with more than 4.6 million followers on Facebook; followed by the United Kingdom, with 1.1 million.
The number of followers that the tourism organizations of each country have on the social network is measured worldwide and depends on the Tourism Institute of the University of Applied Sciences of Western Switzerland Valais (HES-SO Valais).
A report was made, prepared at the beginning of May, where Mexico was ranked in third place by the number of followers of the page visitmexico.com.
The fourth place is occupied by Croatia, with 815 thousand Facebook contacts; followed by New Zealand, with an almost similar number; Spain, with 809 thousand; Ireland, with 765 thousand; Norway, with 718 thousand; Germany, with 506 thousand; and Switzerland, with just over 500,000 followers on the social network.
Within the ranking of eTourism Monitor, Mexico surpasses countries such as the United States and Canada, which ranked 11th and 12th, respectively, with 492,000 and 457,000 followers on Facebook.
The remarkable growth of tourism successfully demonstrates the strategy of social media, influencing the way people travel and make a decision for their next vacation.
Conclusions
Cancun has remained in recent years as one of the favorite places of international tourism, however the competition from places like Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and other places in the Caribbean, make the Federal Government consider Tourism as a strategic activity and dedicate resources to promote the activity.
At the state level, Governor Roberto Borge, has been a tireless promoter of the tourist destination of the brands "Cancun" and "Riviera Maya", he usually spends a trip around Europe, although his duties as ruler remain on the desk.
In recent years, the tourist offer in Cancun has diversified and it is no longer just the sun-beach destination, commercial strategies have allowed the archaeological tourism, adventure, artistic events and tourism segments to increase. Conferences and conventions.
This last segment participates in attracting tourists and attracting foreign currency in 20% of the total tourist activity in Cancun, a not inconsiderable amount that will increase with the construction of new auditoriums for the most important hotels in the destination.
Bibliography
- Ah (18 OF 03 OF 2014). Investing in the hotel sector. Alta hotelería, 14.AH. (2013). Trends in medical conventions. International high hospitality, 16.FONATUR. (JANUARY 2013). FONATUR.GOB. Obtained from Fonatur.MILENIO. (AUGUST 19, 2012). Tourism in mexico. Millennium, p. 34.News from Quintana Roo. (MARCH 15, 2014). Tourism. News from Quintana Roo, p. 60.
